Published 6:57 pm, Sunday, September 28, 2014

The members of the city fire marshal’s office share this fact not to scare, but to inform.

That is because part of their jobs is to investigate the cause of fires, but they also work to prevent fires. Sharing information educates residents about fire safety and the two are among organizers of a series of upcoming events that will do just that.

According to the FBI’s Uniform Crime Report “offenses known to law enforcement” category, New Haven had 18 arson fires in 2011 and 15 in 2012, the most recent data on the website shows. Further, the National Fire Protection Association estimates “U.S. fire departments responded to an average of 366,600 home structure fires per year during the five-year-period of 2007-2011. These fires caused an estimated average of 2,570 civilian deaths, 13,210 civilian injuries and $7.2 billion in direct property damage per year” nationwide.

Featured at the firehouses for the upcoming New Haven fire safety events will be the “smoke trailer,” which assists people in learning about what to do if a fire were to occur; information about candle safety; information about making a family plan and practicing fire drills; and tips about the importance of changing batteries in smoke detectors and heeding smokes alarms, the fire officials said.

Sacarro said an important aspect of such events is sharing information about the help that is available to residents in the wake of a fire. For instance, he noted, the Red Cross provided assistance to the 10 people displaced by the Delaney’s fire.

Other service providers also will be at the events to help residents learn about things such as insurance issues and solutions, he said.

“If it did happen, there are people out there to help,” Saracco said.

Myers and Saracco said they hope for strong turnouts at the events, including children and families. Educating children at a young age about fire safety can help to prevent mishaps and worse, the two said.

“We try to reach out,” said Myers.

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